In Ukraine, something big happened as people went to church on Sunday – they celebrated Christmas on December 25 for the first time. Normally, many Orthodox Christians mark Christmas on January 7, but the government changed it to December 25 this time, kind of as a way to not be friendly to Russia.
Christmas Unity and National Identity in Ukraine
For a long time, most Eastern Christian churches celebrated Christmas on January 7, following a different calendar. But in July, President Zelensky made a law to change the date to December 25. He said it was a way to move away from Russian traditions. Since a big event where Russia took over part of Ukraine in 2014, Ukraine has been doing things to get rid of Russian influences, like changing street names and removing statues.
The Orthodox Church in Ukraine separated from the Russian Orthodox Church because of issues like Russia taking over a part of Ukraine called Crimea and supporting rebels in another part. This split led to changes in churches and even whole groups moving from one church to another. The new Orthodox Church of Ukraine has been growing quickly and taking over buildings linked to Russia, with support from the government.
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Cultural Shifts and Traditions: Evolving Christmas Celebrations in Ukraine
On Sunday evening, many people went to St Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery in Kyiv for a Christmas service led by the leader of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. People all over Ukraine showed support for changing the Christmas date. A man named Denis said changes are hard, but more people need to support it for something new to happen.
Some people in Lviv, a city in the west that wasn’t much affected by the war, said they feel good about joining the civilized world by celebrating Christmas on December 25. Christmas in Ukraine includes a special dinner on Christmas Eve with 12 dishes that don’t have meat, like a sweet grain pudding called kutya. People also decorate their homes with special bundles of wheat and sing carols called kolyadky.
While the new Catholic Church in Ukraine chose to celebrate on December 25, the older Orthodox Church, which used to be linked to Russia, is sticking to the old date of January 7. Christmas traditions in Ukraine have a lot of special things, like the dinner on Christmas Eve and singing carols. And now, Ukrainians are changing when they celebrate Christmas to make a new start.